Criminals and burglars can cause trouble year-round, but in the summer months, burglaries tend to go up. This is because of people going off and leaving their homes unoccupied by going on vacation, being out more frequently and for longer amounts of time due to the weather being nice, and people tending to leave their windows and doors open or unlocked to let in the nice weather.
Burglars are opportunistic, and often more strategic than many people might think they are. Although there are a number of ways to protect your home from summer burglaries, it’s impossible to deter every single burglar that may want to get a hold of your stuff. However, following some of the tips below can greatly reduce your risk of someone getting into your home and stealing something of value from you. Many of the below tips are common sense, but a refresher on safety tips is always helpful nonetheless.
1. Close and lock all doors and windows to your home when you are leaving for the day or even just for a quick errand. Burglars have a tendency to scout out homes before even attempting to burglarize them, and will watch your routines and wait for the perfect opportunity. Ensuring these are all closed can help deter anyone from getting in.
2. Leave a few lights on when you leave, especially at night to give the appearance that someone is home.
3. Install motion sensor lights. Motion sensor lights are a good and affordable way to deter burglars from even coming within a few feet of your house to begin with. Often, motion sensor lights can scare people off and inform whoever is home that there is some movement outside, alerting them to someone wanting to break in.
4. Get a security alarm system or a “smart” security alarm system that can be controlled with your phone when you’re not home. “Smart” systems have the ability to turn lights off and on, ensure doors are locked, and are connected straight to your phone if trouble is detected.
5. Install video surveillance cameras. Believe it or not, there are some pretty good, relatively inexpensive options out there these days for security cameras. Most of them can be connected to your phone so that you can watch from afar if you’re out and someone tries to burglarize your home.
People fall into two categories with this one though- those who are scared off by not wanting to be on video and getting caught, and those who think that if there are security cameras, there is definitely something worth stealing in the home. Either way, being able to see your home and the rooms of your house with security cameras can help a lot when trying to catch a thief, as well as give you the ability to present solid evidence to the police if requested after filing a report.
6. Make sure that if you have a homeowner’s or renter’s insurance policy that it covers theft. Most insurance policies cover theft and damages caused by it. Usually, both your belongings and the cost of repairing a window, door or lock are included in these policies up to a certain dollar amount. Ensuring you have an up-to-date policy, take heed of other extenuating circumstances or requirements for coverages, and filing a police report if something does happen is a good way to make sure you’re protected.
7. Consider your curb appeal to burglars. This one may be easily overlooked, because although it makes a lot of sense, people don’t tend to think about this one.
We all like our home to look pretty good on the outside, but thieves have a different idea of how they like homes to look. If a burglar notices a home is poorly maintained, with overgrown hedges, cracked windows, or personal items left around the yard, it may make your home appear to be an easier target. With an increased amount of places to hide, the general lack of care for your property, and items carelessly thrown about, it could indicate to the burglar that authorities may be less likely to be called right away which could reduce the risk of them getting caught, and are all ideal circumstances for the opportunistic thief.
Here at Southern Alarm and Security, we take your safety seriously. Investing in a home security system can help enormously if a security emergency occurs. We offer security systems, alarms, security cameras, medical alert buttons, and more, with options for renters and businesses as well!
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